


Speaking The Unheard Word

by birdsandivory



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Character Death, Galahd Days, GlaiveWeek, Imperial Takeover, Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV (2016), M/M, Mourning, Pre-Game Through Time Skip, Routine, Selena Ulric (Mentioned), Tumblr Week Fill, dorky boys, major angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-13
Updated: 2017-12-13
Packaged: 2019-02-10 08:39:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12908268
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/birdsandivory/pseuds/birdsandivory
Summary: And like every morning, he watched as the sun crept over the horizon, a simple sight for a simple man. Libertus kept well to his habits, grabbing an old notepad and a charcoal pencil, growing ever shorter from constant use. He’d torn through many a perforated paper, the blue lines faded with age, but he would not stop using them until they existed no more.For Day 1 of Glaive Week on Tumblr: Routine.





	Speaking The Unheard Word

**Author's Note:**

> This is a piece for the very first run GlaiveWeek, which I am super excited about. I really wanted to focus on all points of the theme and this fiction was born - I hope you all enjoy a rare pair!

_"For all of the light that I shut out,_

_For all of the innocent things that I doubt."_

_\- I'll Be Good, Jaymes Young_

 

* * *

 

It was a Monday morning. 

He’d woken up prepared for a day of working in the bar he ran with the greatest friend he’d ever known, Galahd poor, but his days had never seemed brighter - at least, they hadn’t in the beginning. And he kept his heart as full as his unending optimism, in the darkest of hours, for even the perilous storms of the Fulgurian could not compete with his thunderous heart. 

Everyday was never different from another, the same attire for the same job he’d kept for years on end, but the monotonous pattern did not quell the quake of his laughter nor did it dim the light in his eyes - young and vibrant as they were. 

And like every morning, he watched as the sun crept over the horizon, a simple sight for a simple man. Libertus kept well to his habits, grabbing an old notepad and a charcoal pencil, growing ever shorter from constant use. He’d torn through many a perforated paper, the blue lines faded with age, but he would not stop using them until they existed no more. 

He walked past a home he knew well, scribbling words down with gusto, folding the sheet up as he pulled it from its confines and kissed it for the luck that it reached its destination. Without missing a beat, he shoved it beneath an unlocked door, the trust of those within their island villages a tightly knit brotherhood, before continuing to work - a message he knew would always be returned.

_Good morning, moonlight._

It didn’t matter when he would get the response, but he knew it would be that very day, as it had been each rise of the sun since they were children. Sometimes it came with a pat on the shoulder or a kiss on the cheek, sometimes it came as a light punch on the chest, a tug of his braid; today, it came with a crooked grin and a gentle hand on his waist.

_“Hey there, sunshine.”_

It was a Tuesday night.

He was running, his legs moving as quickly as they could carry him, crumpled note in his hand as he headed to that ever so familiar home in the hopes that the man he was searching for was there. The Imperials were relentless and though they had begun the fight together, separation was imminent, leaving him to search amongst the rubble while simultaneously avoiding Niflheim’s army. And it was a treacherous and unfulfilling road, because truly, how could he ever forgive himself for living when so many he’d cared about over the years had perished in the fire?

He could only pray to the Six for Nyx’s safety then.

Libertus wished he had afforded a cellphone, for the both of them, pen on paper doing nothing to bring him closer to the other man - especially when he’d found his home destroyed, not a soul on the premises. It was only a moment later that the sound of footfalls made themselves known and he had no choice but to throw the note to the ground with a growl, in plain sight with the hopes it would be received, old words forgotten and paving way for new ones.

~~_Good morning, moonlight._ ~~

_Please make it to the waterfall._

They played there as children - he, Nyx, and Selena - fools for getting their clothes wet before their mothers had sun-dried the ones they’d washed before, all of them shivering with laughter so grand it was the closest thing to the sound of peace that Libertus had ever had the chance to hear in all of his life. It was but a distant memory now and it took everything he had to hope and pray that he would be reunited with the both of them, safe and sound, eager to escape their once beloved home land. 

His prayers were answered, but only half as much, as the Gods would have it; his truest friend was ragged and dirty, with that pathetically wrinkled paper within his fist as he ran into his arms, pulling Libertus tightly to his body with a watery sigh. And it was then, only then, that Nyx gave him a response.

_“I made it, but she...she didn’t!”_

It was a Wednesday afternoon.

He wasn’t always given guard duty at the check-in, but being that he had been backfiring pretty horrifically during missions lately, Captain Drautos was keen on him taking a break from the front lines - the glaive never really figuring out how he could be the weakest link at times, his slight bit of pudge slowing him down be damned. It didn’t sit well with him that he be punished instead of trying to improve, but he supposed it was time well off that he could put to good use.

At least he was able to sleep in. 

That didn’t leave Libertus behind on routine, however, never one to miss a day -  _never_  - and he was quick to pull out his cellular phone, worn down so quickly from its frequent use despite only ever calling one person. It was a gift of immediate satisfaction, he had to admit, thankful to the king and the glaive for the luxuries he had been allowed after being saved all of those years ago. 

They had _both_  been lucky.

He left the reminiscing for another day, however, his too large fingers slowly typing a message, though his patience still made for many small mistakes; he didn’t care, though, always having shifted between fixing them and leaving them as they were. With a pleasant smile, he sent his words off knowing that he would always get an answer in return.

_Maybe I’ll catch you later?_

In the minutes following, he swore that he heard the distinct sound of warping, that audible electrostatic buzzing within his ears as he took a look from side to side - nothing surrounding him but a few pedestrians and another guard at his post, looking ahead, uncaring of much else. It was so fleeting that he had believed for a moment that he was simply imagining things, though he felt oddly unrelaxed. 

The sound caught wind once more and Libertus barely had the moment to register that it couldn’t be anyone other than Nyx until the very glaive warped dangerously close to him, a swift slap to his backside startling and he hadn’t the time to react before the fiery man warped out of reach, devilish grin on his face as he raised a hand in greeting - jogging backwards if just to keep an eye on him.

_“You can’t even catch me now!”_

It was a Thursday night.

The Citadel was in ruins, King Regis had fallen, and he -  _he_  had taken part in a massacre that left everything he had once known in shambles, the beauty and safety of Insomnia’s thread severed and countless lives lost, the remaining to become slaves to the Empire. And what had he been hoping to accomplish by setting aside his duty as a glaive, as a protector of those who could not protect themselves? It had been a far off dream, to remember Galahd as it was and become what he could not be there in a place all brand new, a better life than what he would have suffered given to him if just for a sliver of loyalty.

Yet, he could not even do that.  

He’d thought Nyx a foolish man, at first, staying chained as a royal dog instead of fighting with the resistance - but they had always disagreed on things and this was no different. Crowe had been murdered, killed, the little sister that had become a part of the family they had created for themselves; and part of Libertus had thought that the proclaimed  _‘hero’_  would have understood him most, but it was not so and he was all the better for it. Perhaps if he had just stayed behind, the end would have not been so grave.

Libertus had the time to make up for it, however, because he may have hobbled his way into a vehicle - but hobble he did, and the very satisfaction he’d felt when ramming into the traitorous body of Titus Drautos was worth every moment he had kept himself apart from his greatest friend. 

The battle still had to go on and he would be parted from Nyx for just a little longer, but as the man had looked his way and the princess kindly left her life in his hands, he could not help but be as pathetic as he had been since the moment they had met - pulling his cellular from his pocket, because he  _never_  missed a day. Lunafreya may have not quite approved of the moment in timing, but her gentle smile was as understanding and faith-giving as one could be. 

_I’ll be waiting._

It took a moment for Nyx to pull out his own, looking to the screen before flipping it over, revealing the dead pixels that flickered on and off at the top right corner - something he never got fixed after angrily tossing it to the floor one day, but it was good enough and the message had been received. Libertus did not wish to dwell on the fact that there was a certain sadness within the other man’s hues, didn’t want to see the frown beneath the smile or how the crinkle in the corner of his eyes didn’t quite stand out as they usually did when he was content. 

Libertus pretended that he was.

_“You’d better be.”_

It was a Friday morning.

Just a week since he’d rescued the princess from Insomnia and delivered her as promised, just a week since he’d left Nyx behind to lead them all to victory - yet, he had heard no word from the man. And Libertus, now in the wilds that was Galahd, realized that nothing was truly theirs any longer. The falls did not bubble and the trees did not sing, the poor were not lively and the rich existed like they had not before; it was a world he did not recognize, but he swore to himself that he would be okay, that  _they_  would be okay.

Still, his phone had yet to ring. 

He’d listened to all of the broadcasts, the desertion of the citizens, the wasteland Insomnia had become - there was no doubt in his mind that Nyx should have been there with him by now, beside him, talking about what they could do to lead normal lives and where their hearts would take them.

Libertus had not given up his routine despite the fact that he had not received a response for days on end, for so long as he did not break the chain, there would be no doubt that he was waiting dutifully for the man’s return. And with shaking fingers, a message was typed thus, a kiss to the screen ensuring its safe passage and with a tap of his thumb - he saw his words disappear into the greater unknown, whether the light of day or Beyond, he did not know. 

_Good morning, moonlight._

Libertus went to sleep that night, but he could not rest.

It was Friday night and he prayed for an answer.

_Where are you?_

It was a Saturday afternoon and he did not get an answer. 

_I miss you._

It was Sunday night and he knew that he would never get an answer. 

Time had passed and he opened his eyes.

And like every morning, he watched as the sun crept over the horizon, a simple sight for a simple man. Libertus kept well to his habits, grabbing an old notepad and a charcoal pencil, growing ever shorter from constant use. He’d torn through many a perforated paper, the blue lines faded with age and he realized that he could not use them because they existed no more, unread words scribbled and lying upon the floor like the casualties of war. 

It was a Monday morning.

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments are appreciated! And don't be afraid to find me on [Tumblr](http://birdsandivory.tumblr.com).


End file.
